Wieners for Dinner

Evening light on the church in Aljucen. The bar and the Albergue are all within steps of each other. We 4, (Karin and 2 new pilgrims that started in Merida ... Arnaud from Munich and Faemia from Amsterdam) had the pilgrim's meal at the bar. My choices were Ensalada mixta 1st course, hake and fries for 2nd course and an orange for dessert. Spanish food is generally excellent but pilgrim food is not. My standards are falling nicely which makes life easier.

When we got back to the albergue at 8:45 the lights were out, bedtime already. It is the camino way. I do sleep well in the albergue dorm rooms but the nights are rather long as we we don't stir until just before 7am. I was itching to go at 5:30am altho no point to that cuz sunrise is around 8am. We need to be able to see the yellow arrows that guide us all the way.

Breakfast at 7am at the same bar, same white bread but today I ordered the tomato spread.

Another perfect camino day along red hued country roads surrounded by these pretty bushes the entire 19.5 kms.
Below kind camino friends have placed blocks for crossing this stream. It was not required today but I used it all the same.

Arrival in Alcuescar, this is a duplex I believe, the left side looking more loved than the right.

Arnaud and Faemia

We are staying in the cloister of the monastery. The doors are locked between 2:25 and 4:30 so we explored the town. In spite of it being Sunday there were was lots of action. We enjoyed the young children dressed in their Sunday best (just like we used to do as children).
There are beds for 20, I got a top bunk with no ladder. Should be interesting.

The courtyard of the cloister. The church has given up a section of its building to the pilgrims. It is donativo so 1 deposits what they can into a box. Dinner is included (precisely at 7:25) so 1 gives more. We were warmly welcomed, a nice atmosphere both at the albergue and in the town. Oh and tbe door is locked at 9:15 pm and unlocked at 7am ... yup, precisely.

Faemia at the entrance to the cloister/albergue. Both Karin and Faemia were brought up Catholic so have been explaining the culture to me. This is the authentic pilgrim experience, throughout the centuries the church would house and feed pilgrims as well as providing hot water for them to wash.
Adjacent, on the same property, is a home for disabled men. They enjoy sitting outside in the warm sun on the many benches or in their wheelchairs .... which is exactly what I am doing as I write this.

So here is the difficult portion of the camino, leaping up to the top bunk without the aid of a ladder or chair. I shall need to step on poor Karin's mattress in order to hoist myself up.

Our dinner made by the monks, delicious gazpacho soup, salad and wieners (not so delicious). Many European nationalities represented, I am the only non European.